KWES NewsWest 9 / Midland, Odessa, Big Spring, TX: newswest9.com | New Travel Warning to Mexico Highlights Recent Disappearances

By Jen Kastner
NewsWest 9

ODESSA- The U.S. State Department has issued a new travel warning to anyone going to Mexico. It became public just three days before three men went missing in Ojinaga, MX. One of those three men is a U.S. citizen from Odessa.

For the family of the missing men, every minute they're gone feels like an eternity.

"It's been a week and a half and it already feels like two months," a close family member who wanted his name withheld, said.

Less than two weeks ago, 22 year old Barnaby Gabaldon, a U.S. citizen from Odessa, disappeared in Ojinaga, Mexico. His father, Alfredo Gabaldon, and brother-in-law, David Garcia, are also missing. Those two live in Mexico.

Their family says a friend witnessed the men being pulled over on the side of the road and taken away by Mexican police officers. The family says law enforcement denies taking these men. The FBI is currently investigating.

"It's heartache at this point. We're remaining faithful that Barnaby's going to return along with Alfredo and David," the close family member, said.

Just three days earlier, the U.S. State Department issued a new travel warning for Mexico in response to the escalation in violence. They wouldn't do a taped interview but said one of their biggest concerns is the recent rise in kidnappings and disappearances.

For the state of Chihuahua, they're telling people to defer all non-essential travel. That state includes the cities of Ojinaga and Juárez. Almost 2,000 people were killed in Juárez just last year.

An employee of NewsWest 9 was in Ojinaga when the men went missing.

"So that kind of took me back [when I found out] because I didn't hear [about it there] and nobody knew about it until I came back Sunday and saw it on the news," the employee, who wishes to have her identity disguised, said.

She goes there about once a month to visit family and says disappearances are common. Her church friends have lost family members.

"Their sons have gone missing and husbands have gone missing. They're still holding onto hope that they'll be found," she said.

She's seen a rise in crime over the past few years but it won't deter her from going there.

"There are certain hot spots in the city that are known for drug-related violence or crime so I stay away from those places," she said.